The new scholarship programme announced by the New Zealand government puts Latin America in a prominent position, promoting educational cooperation with the region. Latin American educational institutions will welcome Kiwi students starting next year.

As of September 1 New Zealand students can apply to the first round of the "Prime Minister's Scholarships for Latin America" programme, open to those interested in studying in the region.

This initiative was created by the Government of New Zealand in 2013 to support studies in Asia, but after a visit to Santiago, Chile, by the Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Minister Steven Joyce in April 2015, it was decided to extend this programme to Latin America.

The selected students will have the opportunity to stay from four weeks to two years in selected Latin American countries to study a programme of their choice: undergraduate, graduate, academic exchange, research or languages.

They can also do internships for a period of up to 12 weeks.

"These scholarships will provide Kiwi students the opportunity to live and study in Latin America, a region with a rich history and an incredible culture.

"They will support the creation of strong links between people, which are essential to strengthen the relationship between New Zealand and Latin America", said Jacqui Caine, Ambassador of New Zealand in Chile.

Candidates will be selected according to academic merit, the relevance of their programme to the objectives of the scholarship, their ability to represent New Zealand overseas in a positive way and to establish lasting ties with their Latin American colleagues.

"This initiative confirms the strong relationships that New Zealand has in Latin America.

"We are very happy with the programme because it will increase the number of New Zealand students in that region, who will have the opportunity to witness a new culture and learn from it, in the same way that more and more Latin American students are choosing New Zealand as a study destination”, said Lisa Futschek, Regional Director for the Americas and Europe for Education New Zealand.

ENZ is the agency of the Government of New Zealand for international education. ENZ works to increase awareness of New Zealand as a study destination and to support education providers and companies in New Zealand in exporting their products and services.